Former UConn Great Ray Allen Takes His Shots Against Diabetes

CROMWELL – Ray Allen had a rare opportunity this summer. He appeared before Congress as a powerful ally for his son.

"I go in there as an NBA player that has a voice," Allen said, "a little power where I can help mobilize people. But more importantly, I'm a father that wants a cure for my son and his diabetes. The senators got a chance to see the face of diabetes, these little kids who have nothing to do with why they have the disease."

In 2008, as Allen was on the verge of winning an NBA championship with the Celtics, his son Walker was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. Walker is now 6, managing the disease every day of his life.

"My son handles it in stride," Allen said, "but over the summer, he's kind of bucking taking his medicine. He takes it, but I can tell he's starting to grow and he wants to be over it. He's angry. He sees other kids running off into the distance and not worrying about anything."

Allen, an All-American at UConn in the mid-1990s, appeared on Capitol Hill on July 9, as the Senate's Special Committee on Aging was taking testimony on the importance of continuing its funding for diabetes research.

"My hope going in there was to create enough noise to make people understand this is a serious disease and I live with it every single day," he said. "And to make sure no kids lose their lives because they were misdiagnosed and their parents understand the warning signs — fatigue, dehydration, bed-wetting, etc."

The chance to speak on this issue, and advocate others, such as refurbishing computer labs in public schools, is a driving for Allen, who turned 38 on July 20, to continue playing, to try for one more championship ring. He won his second last June, hitting a crucial three-point shot for the Miami Heat to force overtime in Game 6, and the Heat survived to beat the Spurs in Game 7. The chance to go out on that note was tempting, but Allen has decided to return for an 18th season.

"I thought about [retiring]," he said. "I got away from it for two or three days and I thought about it. It gets harder and harder every year, but I just have to work a little harder to stay on top."

Allen is back at his Connecticut home for the summer. He was at the Wish School in Hartford last week, as a new computer lab opened for students, the handiwork of his Ray of Hope Foundation. On Monday, he ran his celebrity golf tournament to raise money and awareness for the need to provide updated equipment for public schools.

"It's probably one of the things I'm most proud of that I've done in my career," he said. "To be able to take that and go back and stand in front of little kids and say 'I want to help you succeed. I want to help you be the best you can be.' … As a society, we're failing our kids. We're not putting the money in the right places. The things we love, we get addicted to — TV, sports — the money needs to go into school system. If government isn't putting money in, private sector has a responsibility. We need to make sure our public schools are up to snuff, that all kids are getting the chance for a good education, not just our own."

And UConn is never far from Allen's thoughts. A year ago, he endorsed former teammate Kevin Ollie as the choice to succeed Jim Calhoun.

"I'm so proud of Kevin and the job he has done," Allen said. "I think about where he started, to where he is now. You're never ready for anything of that magnitude – being a head coach, being a father, driving – all those things in our lives, you have to get thrown into the fire and you just kind of figure out as you go along. You have the greatest intentions to be great, and do well, and you make sure you lead. Kevin, I knew he'd do a great job."

Allen has not been to UConn yet this summer, but plans to be at Gampel this week to, among other things, see the progress being made in the construction of the new basketball facility. He expressed the need for more of the former Huskies in the NBA to be a part of the program.

"Kevin has reached out to past players," Allen said. "I have to say, we didn't do a great job of keeping the pros we have around the university. That's one thing Kevin and I talked about when he took over, one thing we need to improve on getting out past players, ones in NBA and one that aren't, who are playing overseas, back in the fold, sharing all our future success. We can't get recruits if they don't feel as though they're in a family system."